Rob and I found out on Tuesday night that the Lakers (it turned out to be just Kobe) were going to appear at Disneyland on Thursday morning to celebrate their NBA championship. Now, if you know the two of us, you KNOW this is the PERFECT combination of things we love. So I managed to get the morning off from work and we made our way over to the happiest place on Earth. Thank goodness for our Annual Passes!

We arrived just after the 8am park opening and there were already TONS of purple and gold faithful lining Main Street waiting for the 10am parade. Rob decided to stake out a seat for us in front of the Fire Dept/City Hall area while I got my morning coffee and croissant. YUM.

Here we are happily waiting for the parade to start. It was cool and overcast in the morning but as it got later, the sun came out and beat down on us. It was so hot I was afraid of getting a sunglass tan. (I do have priorities).

Kobe’s approaching! You could *feel* the anticipation in the air.

The lead banner of the parade. SQUEE.

Finally. There’s Kobe’s coming around the corner! WITH MICKEY. WOOOOOOOOOO. The parade was just 1 float accompanied by a handful of Disney characters and dancers dressed in Lakers jerseys but there was something about being there with so many other fans that made the “event” feel bigger than it really was. I’m glad I got to be a part of it.

Before heading home to go back to work, we managed to fit in a quick ride on Space Mountain (still the best ride ever). On our way out of the park, I spotted this cast member selling purple and gold balloons so I had to get my picture taken with them. And no, I was not the only person doing this. It was a great start to my day.